Semiconductor device having a metal via

ABSTRACT

A semiconductor device includes a substrate having a device isolation region defining an active region. An active fin is positioned in the active region. A gate structure overlaps the active fin along a direction orthogonal to an upper surface of the substrate and extends in a second direction intersecting the first direction, A source/drain region is disposed on the active fin. A contact plug is connected to the source/drain region and overlaps the active fin. A metal via is positioned at a first level above the substrate higher than an upper surface of the contact plug and spaced apart from the active fin. A metal line is positioned at a second level above the substrate, higher than the first level and connected to the metal via. A via connection layer extends from an upper portion of the contact plug and is connected to the metal via.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2017-0071676 filed on Jun. 8, 2017 in the KoreanIntellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated byreference herein its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Exemplary embodiments of the present inventive concept relate to asemiconductor device, and more particularly to a semiconductor devicehaving a metal via.

DISCUSSION OF RELATED ART

In some semiconductor devices such as a logic circuit and a memory,interconnection structures such as a contact plug for connection to ametal line of a back end of line (BEOL), as well as a source and adrain, have been used.

In highly integrated semiconductor devices, a line width and/or a pitchmay be reduced or a routing may become relatively complicated, and anundesired short defect with a component adjacent to an interconnectingstructure may occur.

SUMMARY

An exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept provides a semiconductor device having a novel interconnection structure having areduced amount of short defects with adjacent components.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, asemiconductor device includes a substrate having a device isolationregion defining an active region. An active fin is positioned in theactive region and extends in a first direction. A gate structureoverlaps the active fin along a direction orthogonal to an upper surfaceof the substrate and extends in a second direction intersecting thefirst direction. A source/drain region is disposed on the active fin. Acontact plug is connected to the source/drain region and overlaps theactive fin along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of thesubstrate. A metal via is positioned at a first level above thesubstrate higher than an upper surface of the contact plug and spacedapart from the active fin along the direction orthogonal to the uppersurface of the substrate. A metal line is positioned, at a second levelabove the substrate, higher than the first level and connected to themetal via. A via connection layer extends from an upper portion of thecontact plug and is connected to the metal via.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, asemiconductor device includes a substrate having a device isolationregion defining a first active region and a second active region. Afirst active fin and a second active fin are positioned in the firstactive region and the second active region, respectively, and extend ina first direction. A first gate structure and a second gate structureoverlap the first active fin and the second active fin, respectively,along a direction orthogonal to an upper surface of the substrate andextend in a second direction intersecting the first direction. A firstsource/drain region and a second source/drain region are disposed on thefirst active fin and the second active fin, respectively. A firstcontact plug and a second contact plug are connected to the firstsource/drain region and the second source/drain region,, respectively.The first contact plug overlaps the first active fin along the directionorthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate. A metal via ispositioned at a first level above the substrate, higher than an uppersurface of the first contact plug, and spaced apart from the active finalong the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate. Ametal line is positioned at a second level above the substrate, higherthan the first level, and is connected to the metal via. A viaconnection layer extends from an upper portion of the first contact plugto the metal via.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present, inventive concept,a semiconductor device includes an active region having an upper surfacein which a plurality of active fins are defined. A gate structureoverlaps at least one active fin of the plurality of active fins along adirection orthogonal to an upper surface of the substrate, Asource/drain region is disposed on the plurality of active fins, Acontact plug has a lower surface connected to the source/drain region. Ametal via is spaced apart from the contact plug along the directionorthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate and is surface of thecontact plug. A metal line is positioned at a second level, higher thanthe first level, and is connected to the metal via. A via connectionlayer has an upper surface substantially coplanar with the upper surfaceof the contact plug, extends from an upper portion of the contact plugand is connected to the metal via.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, asemiconductor device includes a substrate including a first activeregion and a second active region. A first active fin is positioned inthe first active region. A first source/drain region is disposed on thefirst active fin. A first contact plug is positioned above the firstsource/drain region. A first via connection layer is positioned abovethe first contact plug. The first via connection layer includes a firstportion overlapping the first contact plug along a direction orthogonalto an upper surface of the substrate, and a second portion spaced apartfrom the first contact plug along the direction orthogonal to the uppersurface of the substrate. A first metal via is disposed on the secondportion of the first via connection layer. A first metal line isdisposed on the first metal via. A second active fin is positioned inthe second active region. A second source/drain region is disposed, onthe second active fin. A second contact plug is positioned above thesecond source/drain region. A second via connection layer is positionedabove the second contact plug and overlaps the second contact plug alongthe direction orthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate. A secondmetal via is disposed on the second via connection layer. A second metalline is disposed on the second metal via,

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The above and other features of the inventive concept will become moreapparent by describing in detail exemplary embodiments thereof, withreference to the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1A is a planar layout diagram illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept;

FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line I-I′ of FIG, 1A;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device according toan exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept;

FIG. 3A is a planar layout diagram illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept;

FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II′ and lineIII-III′ of FIG. 3A;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device according toan exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept;

FIGS. 5 through 7 are drawings illustrating a method of manufacturing asemiconductor device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept;

FIGS. 8 through 12 are drawings illustrating a method of manufacturing asemiconductor device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept;

FIG. 13A is a planar layout diagram illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept;

FIG. 13B is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV′ and line V-Vof FIG. 13A;

FIG. 14 is a planar layout diagram illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept;

FIGS. 15 through 19 are drawings illustrating a method of manufacturinga semiconductor device according to an exemplary embodiment, of thepresent inventive concept; and

FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating an electronic device in which asemiconductor device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept is employed as a memory device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Exemplary embodiments of the present inventive concept will be describedbelow in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Inthis regard, the exemplary embodiments may have different forms andshould not be construed as being limited to the exemplary embodiments ofthe present inventive concept described herein. Like reference numeralsmay refer to like elements throughout the specification and drawings.

FIG. 1A is a planar layout diagram illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept.FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line I-I′ of FIG. 1A.

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, a semiconductor device 100A according toan exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept may include afirst active region AR1 and a second active region AR2 of a substrate101 formed by a device isolation region 107. For example, each of thefirst and second active regions AR1 and AR2 formed by the deviceisolation region 107, as well as the active fins (e.g., active fins 105and 205 described in more detail below) may be a part of the substrate101.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, thesubstrate 101 may include a semiconductor such as Si or Ge, or acompound semiconductor such as SiGe, SiC, GaAs, InAs, or InP. In anexemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, the substrate 101may have a silicon on insulator (SCI) structure. The first active regionAR1 and the second active region AR2 may each be a conductive regionsuch as a well doped with an impurity or a structure doped with animpurity. In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept,the first active region AR1 maybe an n-type well for a PMOS transistor,and the second active region AR2 may be a p-type well for an NMOStransistor; however, exemplary embodiments of the present invention arenot limited thereto.

A first active fin 105 may be positioned, in an upper surface of thefirst active region AR1, and a second active fin 205 may be positionedin an upper surface of the second active region AR2. Each of the firstactive fin 105 and the second active fin 205 may include a structureprotruding from an upper surface of each of the first active region AR1and the second active region AR2 along a direction orthogonal to anupper surface of the substrate 101 (e.g., in a z-direction). In anexemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, each of the firstactive fin 105 and the second active fin 205 may include three activefins; however, exemplary embodiments of the present invention are notlimited to a particular number of active fins. In an exemplaryembodiment of the present inventive concept, each of the first activefin and the second active fin may include a single active fin or adifferent number of active fins than three active fins.

Referring to FIG. 1A, each of the active fins of the first active fins105 and each of the active fins of the second active fin 205 may extendin-parallel with each other in the first active region AR1 and thesecond active region AR2, respectively, along a first direction (e.g.,along an x direction). Each of the first active fin 105 and the secondactive fin 205 may be an active region of a transistor.

The device isolation region 107 defines the first active region AR1 andthe second active region AR2. The device isolation region 107 mayinclude a silicon oxide or a silicon oxide-based insulating material.The device isolation region 107 may include a first isolation region 107a defining an active region and a second isolation region 107 b definingthe first active fin 105 and the second active fin 205. The firstisolation region 107 a has a bottom surface deeper than that of thesecond isolation region 107 b. The first isolation region 107 a may bereferred to as a deep trench isolation (DTI) region, and the secondisolation region 107 b may be referred to as a shallow trench isolation(STI) region.

The second, isolation, region 107 b may be positioned in the firstactive region AR1 and the second active region AR2. The first active fin105 and the second active fin 205 may pass through the second isolationregion 107 b. At least one of the first active fin 105 and the second,active fin 205 may extend above an upper surface of the second isolationregion 107 b.

The semiconductor device 100A according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept may include a first gate structure GS1 anda second gate structure GS2. Referring to FIG. 1A, the first gatestructure GS1 and the second gate structure GS2 may each have a linearshape (e.g., a rectangular shape when viewed from a plan view) extendedin a second direction (e.g., a y direction) intersecting the firstdirection (e.g., the x direction). The first gate structure GS1 mayoverlap a portion of the first active fin 105, and the second gatestructure GS2 may overlap a portion of the second active fin 205 alongthe direction orthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate 101. Thefirst gate structure GS1 and the second gate structure GS2 according toan exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept will bedescribed in more detail below with reference to FIG. 3B.

The semiconductor device 100A according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept may include a first source/drain region110 and a second source/drain region 210, as well as a first contactstructure CS1, a second contact structure CS2, a third contact structureCS3, and a fourth contact structure CS4 connected, to the firstsource/drain region 110 and the second source/drain region 210.

The first source/drain region 110 and the second source/drain region 210may be formed in portions of the first active fin 105 and the secondactive fin 205 at opposite sides of the first gate structure GS1 and thesecond gate structure GS2, respectively. In an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept, the first source/drain region 110 and thesecond source/drain region 210 may have an upper surface at a level,higher than that of an upper surface of the first active fin 105 and thesecond active fin 205, as a recess may be formed in a portion of thefirst active fin 105 and the second active fin 205, and selectiveepitaxial growth (SEG) may be performed in the recess. The firstsource/drain region 110 and the second source/drain region 210 may bereferred to as a raised source/drain (RSD). For example, the firstsource/drain region 110 and the second source/drain region 210 may eachinclude Si, SiGe, or Ge, and may each have a conductivity type such asan N-type or a P-type.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, the firstsource/drain region 110 may include SiGe, and may be doped with a P-typeimpurity, for example, boron (B), indium (In), gallium (Ga), or borontrifluoride (BF₃). The second source/drain region 210 may includesilicon (Si), and may be doped with an N-type impurity, for example,phosphorus (P), nitrogen (K), arsenic (As), or antimony (Sb). The firstsource/drain region 110 and the second source/drain region 210 may havedifferent shapes from each other along a crystallographically stablesurface during a growth process. Referring to FIG. 1B, a cross section(e.g., in a z direction) of the first source/drain region 110 may bepentagonal, and a cross section (e.g., in a z direction) of the secondsource/drain region 210 may be hexagonal or may have a polygon shapehaving at least one curved side.

A first FinFET TR1 including the first gate structure GS1, the firstsource/drain region 110 and the first active fin 105 may be formed onthe first active region AR1. A second FinFET TR2 including the secondgate structure GS2, the second source/drain region 210 and the secondactive fin 205 may be formed on the second active region AR2.

In the semiconductor device 100A according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept, an interlayer insulating layer 160 may bedisposed on the device isolation region 107. The interlayer insulatinglayer 160 may include a first interlayer insulating layer 161 around thefirst gate structure GS1 and the second gate structure GS2 and a secondinterlayer insulating layer 162 disposed on the first interlayerinsulating layer 161. For example, at least one of the first interlayerinsulating layer 161 and the second interlayer insulating layer 162 maybe Tetra Ethyl Ortho Silicate (TEOS), Undoped Silicate Glass (USG),PhosphoSilicate Glass (PSG), Borosilicate Glass (BSG),BoroPhosphoSilicate Glass (BPSG), Fluoride Silicate Glass (FSG),Spin-on-glass (SOG), Tonen SilaZene (TOSZ) or combinations thereof. Thefirst interlayer insulating layer 161 and the second interlayerinsulating layer 162 may each be formed using a chemical vapordeposition (CVD) or spin coating process.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, the firstcontact structure CS1, the second contact structure CS2, the thirdcontact structure CS3, and the fourth contact structure CS4 may passthrough the first interlayer insulating layer 161, and may be connectedto the first source/drain region 110 and the second source/drain region210, respectively. As an example, the first contact structure CS1 andthe third contact structure CS3 may be connected to the firstsource/drain region 110 of the first FinFET TR1, and the second contactstructure CS2 and the fourth contact structure CS4 may be connected tothe second source/drain region 210 of the second FinFET TR2.

Referring to FIG. 1E, each of the first contact structure CS1, thesecond contact structure CS2, the third contact structure CS3, and thefourth contact structure CS4 may include a metal silicide layer 182, afirst conductive barrier 181, as well as a first contact plug 185A, asecond contact plug 185B, a third contact plug 185C, and a fourthcontact plug 185D. The first conductive barrier 181 may cover a sidesurface and a lower surface of the first contact plug 185A, the secondcontact plug 185B, the third contact plug 185C, and the fourth contactplug 185D. The metal silicide layer 182 may be disposed between thefirst conductive barrier 131 and each of the first source/drain region110 as well as the second source/drain region 210. For example, thefirst conductive barrier 181 may include a metal nitride such as TiN,TaN, or WN. The metal silicide layer 182 may include a material such asCoSi, NiSi, or TiSi. The first contact plug 185A, the second contactplug 185B, the third contact plug 185C, and the fourth contact plug 185Dmay include tungsten (W), cobalt (Co), titanium (Ti), alloys thereof, orcombinations thereof,

The semiconductor device 100A according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept may include an interconnection structureconnecting a metal line to a contact plug. The interconnection structuremay include a metal via located in a contact point of a metal line and avia connection layer connecting the metal via to the contact plug.

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the metal line may include a first metalline M1, a second metal line M2, a third, metal line M3, a fourth metalline M4, and a fifth metal line M5 extended in a first direction (e.g.,an x direction) on the first FinFET TR1 and the second FinFET TR2. Thesecond metal line M2, the third metal line M3, the fourth metal line M4,and the fifth metal line M5, a portion of the first metal line M1, thesecond metal line M2, the third metal line M3, the fourth metal line M4,and the fifth metal line M5, as well as the first contact plug 185A, thesecond contact plug 185B, the third, contact, plug 185C, and the fourthcontact plug 185D, may be connected to a first metal via V1, a secondmetal via V2, a third metal via V3, and a fourth metal via V4 through afirst via connection layer 195A, a second via connection layer 195B, athird via connection layer 195C, and a fourth via connection layer 195D,respectively.

The first metal line M1, the second metal line M2, the third metal lineM3, the fourth metal line M4, and the fifth metal line M5 may each beformed in a low dielectric layer 170. The low dielectric layer 170employed in an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept mayinclude a first low dielectric layer 171 and a second low dielectriclayer 172 positioned above the interlayer insulating layer 160. Thefirst metal line M1, the second metal line M2, the third metal line M3,the fourth metal line M4, and the fifth metal line M5 may be formed inthe second low dielectric layer 172, and the first metal via V1, thesecond metal via V2, the third metal via V3, and the fourth metal via V4maybe formed in the first low dielectric layer 171. The first metal viaV1, the second metal via V2, the third metal via V3, and the fourthmetal via V4 may be formed in a contact point to be connected to acontact plug in the second metal line M2, the third metal line M3, thefourth metal line M4, and the fifth metal line M5, respectively. Forexample, the first, low dielectric layer 171 and the second lowdielectric layer 172 may include a silicon oxide film., a siliconoxynitride film, a SiOC film, a SiCOH film, or combinations thereof. Forexample, the first metal line M1, the second metal line M2, the thirdmetal line M3, the fourth metal line M4, and the fifth metal line M5, aswell as the first metal via V1, the second metal via V2, the third metalvia V3, and the fourth metal via V4 may include copper or acopper-containing alloy. The first metal line M1, the second metal lineM2, the third metal line M3, the fourth metal line M4, and the fifthmetal line M5, as well as the first metal via V1, the second metal viaV2, the third metal via V3, and the fourth metal via V4 may be formedtogether using a dual-damascene process.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, an etchstop layer 179 may be disposed between the interlayer insulating layer160 and the first low dielectric layer 171. For example. The etch stoplayer 179 may be disposed between the second interlayer insulating layer162 and the first low dielectric layer 171. The etch stop layer 179 mayserve not only to stop etching, but also to prevent a metal (forexample, Cu) forming the first metal line M1, the second metal line M2,the third metal line M3, the fourth metal line M4, and the fifth metalline M5, as well as the first metal via V1, the second metal via V2, thethird metal via V3, and the fourth metal via V4 from being diffused to alower region. As an example, the etch stop layer 179 may includealuminum nitride (AlN); however, exemplary embodiments of the presentinvention are not limited thereto.

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, when viewed in a direction (e.g., a zdirection) along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of thesubstrate 101, the third metal line M3 related to the first contact plug185A may be spaced apart from the first active region AR1 (i.e., doesnot overlap) along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of thesubstrate 101. As an example, the first metal via V1 in direct contactwith the third metal line M3 may be spaced apart from (i.e., does notoverlap) the first active region AR1 along the direction orthogonal tothe upper surface of the substrate 101.

As an example, an entire lower surface of the first contact, plug 185Amay overlap the first active region AR1 along the direction orthogonalto the upper surface of the substrate 101. Referring to FIG. 1B, toallow the entire lower surface of the first contact plug 185A to overlapthe first active region ARI along the direction orthogonal to the uppersurface of the substrate 101, a width d of the lower surface of thefirst contact plug 185A (see, e.g., FIG. 6) may be smaller than a widthD (see, e.g., FIG. 6) of the first active region AR1.

When the first contact plug 185A for connection with the third metalline M3 is extended to a bottom of the first metal via V1 to be formed ashort defect may occur with other components. For example, in theextended first contact plug 185A, a short defect may be caused with thesecond source/drain region 210 of the second FinFET TR2 adjacentthereto. In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept,the first contact plug 185A is formed to allow a lower surface of thefirst, contact plug 185A to be present within a boundary of an uppersurface of the first active region AR1, so an occurrence of an undesiredshort defect may be reduced or eliminated.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, to connectthe first contact plug 185A to the first metal via V1, which do notoverlap each other in a vertical direction along the directionorthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate 101 (e.g., a zdirection), the first, via connection layer 135A may extend in ahorizontal direction along a direction perpendicular to an upper surfaceof the substrate 101 (e.g., an x-y direction). The first via connectionlayer 195A according to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventiveconcept may be positioned between an upper surface of the first contactplug 185A and a level (e.g., a first level) in which the first metal viaV1 is positioned. Referring to FIG. 1B, the first metal via V1 may beformed in the first low dielectric layer 171 formed on the secondinterlayer insulating layer 162,

An interconnection structure of the fifth metal line M5 and the thirdcontact plug 185C is substantially the same as the metal lines (e.g.,metal line M3) and the contact plugs (e.g., contact plug 185A) describedabove. As an example, the third contact plug 185C may be connected tothe third metal via V3 located, in a region in which the third metal viadoes not overlap the third contact plug, by the third via connectionlayer 195C.

In a manner different from the first contact plug 185A and the thirdcontact plug 185C, the second contact plug 185B and the fourth contactplug 185D may be positioned in a region in which the second, contactplug and the fourth contact plug overlap the second metal via V2 and thefourth metal via V4. Referring to FIG. 1B, the second contact plug 185Bmay be connected to the second metal via V2 by the second via connectionlayer 195B. The second via connection layer 195B may be formed in thesecond interlayer insulating layer 162 with, the first via connectionlayer 195A. The fourth contact plug 185D may have substantially a samestructure as the second contact plug 185B.

The first via connection layer 195A, the second via connection layer195B, the third via connection layer 195C, and the fourth via connectionlayer 195D according to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventiveconcept, may be formed separately from the first contact plug 185A, thesecond contact, plug 185B, the third contact plug 185C, and the fourthcontact plug 185D (see, e.g., FIGS. 5 through 7). Each of the first viaconnection layer 195A and the third via connection layer 195C may have awidth W2 different from a width W1 of each of the first contact plug185A and the third contact plug 185C when viewed in an extendingdirection. For example, the width W2 of each of the first via connectionlayer 195A and the third via connection layer 195C may be smaller thanthe width W1 of the each of the first contact plug 185A and the thirdcontact plug 185C.

In a manner similar to the first conductive barrier 181, a secondconductive barrier 191 may be formed between each of the first viaconnection layer 195A, the second via connection layer 1953, the thirdvia connection layer 195C, as well as the fourth via connection layer195D, and the second interlayer insulating layer 162. Referring to FIG.1B, the second conductive barrier 191 may disposed on side surfaces anda lower surface of the first via connection layer 195A and the secondvia connection layer 195B. As an example, the second conductive barrier191 may include metal nitride such as TiN, TaN, or WN. In an exemplaryembodiment of the present inventive concept, a portion of the secondconductive barrier 191 may be disposed between the first via connectionlayer 195A and the first contact plug 185A, As an example, the first viaconnection layer 195A, the second via connection layer 195B, the thirdvia connection layer 195C, and the fourth via connection layer 195D mayinclude W, Co, Ti, alloys thereof, or combinations thereof. In anexemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, the first viaconnection layer 195A, the second via connection layer 195B, the third,via connection layer 195C, and the fourth via connection layer 195D mayinclude a same material as the first contact plug 185A, the secondcontact plug 185B, the third contact plug 185C, and the fourth contactplug 185D.

An interconnection structure according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept is not limited to the example embodiment(referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B) described above, and an interconnectionstructure of a contact plug and a metal via positioned in a region inwhich the contact plug does not overlap the metal via may be variouslychanged.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept describedabove, an additional interlayer insulating layer (e.g., a secondinterlayer insulating layer) may be formed between the metal via and thecontact plug, and a via connection layer extended from an upper surfaceof the contact plug may be introduced to the additional interlayerinsulating layer.

Alternatively, without the introduction of an additional insulatinglayer between a back end of line (BEOL) structure and a contact plug,the first interlayer insulating layer and a via connection layer formedin an upper end of the contact plug may be used to implement aninterconnection structure with a metal via.

Referring to FIG. 1B, according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept, a semiconductor device may include thesubstrate 101 including the first active region AR1 and the secondactive region AR2. The first active fin 105 may be positioned in thefirst active region AR1. The first source/drain region 110 may bedisposed on the first active fin 105. The first contact plug 185A may bepositioned above the first source/drain region 110. The first viaconnection layer 195A may be positioned above the first contact plug185A. The first via connection layer 135A may include a first portionoverlapping the first contact plug 185A along a direction orthogonal toan upper surface of the substrate 101, and a second portion spaced apartfrom the first contact plug 185A along the direction orthogonal to theupper surface of the substrate 101. The first metal via V1 may bedisposed on the second portion of the first via connection layer 135A.The metal line (e.g., metal line M3) may be disposed, on the first metalvia V1. The second active fin 205 may be positioned in the second activeregion AR2. The second source/drain region 210 may be disposed on thesecond active fin 205, The second contact plug 185B may be positionedabove the second source/drain region 210. The second via connection,layer 135B may be positioned above the second contact plug 185B and mayoverlap the second contact plug 185B along the direction orthogonal tothe upper surface of the substrate 101. The second metal via V2 may bedisposed on the second via connection layer 195B. A second, metal line(e.g., metal line M4) may be disposed on the second metal via V2.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device according toan exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 2, a semiconductor device 100B according to anexemplary embodiment of the present, inventive concept is similar to thesemiconductor device 100 a described above with reference to FIG. 1A andFIG. 1B, except that the second interlayer insulating layer (162 of FIG.1B) is omitted, and a via connection layer 195′ is formed, in an upperportion of the first interlayer insulating layer 161 and a first contactplug 185A′. Thus, duplicative descriptions may be omitted below. Forexample, a layout of the semiconductor device 100A described above withreference to FIG. 1A and FIG. 1E and the description thereof may beapplied to the semiconductor device 100B described in more detail below.

The via connection layer 195′ according to an example embodiment of thepresent inventive concept may be formed, to be integrated with the firstcontact plug 185A′ along an upper region of the first interlayerinsulating layer 161. The via connection layer 195′ and the firstcontact plug 185A′ may be formed in a single filling process (describedin more detail below with reference to FIGS. 8 through 12). The viaconnection layer 195′ and the first contact plug 185A′ may include samematerial, for example, a metal such as W, Co, or Ti.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, the firstcontact plug 185A′ may have an upper surface that extends along a planesubstantially the same as an upper surface of the via connection layer195′. Thus, upper surfaces of the first contact plug 185A′ and the viaconnection layer 195′ may be coplanar. The coplanar upper surfaces ofthe first contact plug 185A′ and the via connection layer 195′ may be asurface obtained using a planarization process such as chemicalmechanical polishing (CMP) after a filling process for the viaconnection layer 195′ and the first contact plug 185A′ (describe in moredetail below with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12).

The first contact plug 185A integrated with the via connection layer 195may have a single conductive barrier 181′. The conductive barrier 181′according to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive conceptmay be disposed between an integrated structure and the first interlayerinsulating layer 161, and need not be present between the via connectionlayer 195′ and the first contact plug 185A′. As described above, in anexemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, a contactstructure CS1′ integrated with the via connection layer 195′ may beimplemented. For example, the conductive barrier 181′ may include metalnitride such as TiN, TaN, or WN.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, asegregation of the via connection layer 195″ and the first contact plug185A′ may be omitted. For example, a portion extended from an upperportion of the first contact plug 185A′ in a horizontal direction may bepresent, which may overlap the first metal via V1 along the directionorthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate 101.

Similarly to the first contact plug 185A′, the third contact plug 185C,which does not overlap a metal via related thereto (e.g., metal via V1),may be integrated with a via connection layer (see, e.g., FIG. 1 andFIG. 2).

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept,when a metal via related to a contact plug is positioned in a regionoverlapping the contact plug, the metal via connected to a metal linemay be directly connected to a contact plug without an intervening viaconnection layer. For example, Referring to FIG. 2, the second metal viaV2 is directly connected to the second contact plug 185B to allow thefourth metal line M4 to be electrically connected to the second contactplug 185B. Thus, the horizontally extended portion of the first contactplug 185A′ and the via connection layer 195′ described above withreference to the first contact plug 185′ may be omitted in the secondcontact plug 185B

FIG. 3A is a planar layout diagram illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept.FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II′ and lineIII-III′ of FIG. 3A.

Referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, a semiconductor device 100C according toan exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept may include anactive region AR defined by the device isolation region 107, the activefin 105 including a plurality of active fins positioned at an uppersurface of the active region, and a gate structure GS including aplurality of gate structures and intersecting a region of the activefin. Unless otherwise specified below, the semiconductor device 100Caccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive conceptmay be substantially the same as the semiconductor device 100 adescribed above, and thus duplicative descriptions may be omitted below.

The active fin 105 employed in an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept is not limited to a particular number of active fins,and thus the active fin 105 may include more or less than three activefins. As an example, the three active fins may be spaced apart from eachother at regular intervals in an upper surface of the active region ARto be extended in-parallel in the first direction (e.g., an xdirection). The active fin 105 may be provided as an active region ofeach transistor.

The gate structure GS employed in an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept may include a plurality of gate structures (see, e.g.,FIG. 3A, in which four gate structures are illustrated), and may beextended in a second direction (e.g., a y direction) intersecting thefirst direction (e.g., the x direction). The gate structure GS mayoverlap a portion of the active fin 105 along the direction orthogonalto the upper surface of the substrate 101.

Referring to FIG. 3B, the gate structure GS may include gate spacers141, a gate dielectric film 142 and a gate electrode 145 sequentiallydisposed between the gate spacers 141, as well as a gate capping layer147 disposed on the gate electrode 145.

The gate spacers 141 may include an insulating material such as SiOCN,SiON, SiCN, or SiN. The gate dielectric film 142 may include a siliconoxide film, a high dielectric film, or combinations thereof. The highdielectric film may include a material having a permittivity (forexample, about 10 to 25) greater than that of a silicon oxide film. Forexample, the high dielectric film may include a material selected fromhafnium, oxide, hafnium oxynitride, hafnium silicon oxide, lanthanumoxide, lanthanum aluminum oxide), or combinations thereof, but exemplaryembodiments of the present inventive concept are not limited thereto.The gate dielectric film 142 may be formed using an atomic layerdeposition (ALD), a chemical vapor deposition (CVD), or a physical vapordeposition (PVD) process.

The gate electrode 145 may include a first gate electrode controlling awork function and a second gate electrode filling a space formed in anupper portion of the first gate electrode. For example, the first gateelectrode may include a metal nitride such as a titanium nitride film(TiN), a tantalum nitride film (TaN), or a tungsten nitride film (WN),and the second gate electrode may include a metal such as aluminum (M),tungsten (W), molybdenum (Mo), or a semiconductor material such as dopedpolysilicon. The gate capping layer 147 may include an insulatingmaterial such as silicon nitride.

The semiconductor device 100C according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept may include the first contact structureCS1, the second contact structure CS2, the third contact structure CS3,and the fourth contact structure CS4 connected to the source/drainregion 110.

The source /drain region 110 may be formed in a portion of the activefin 105 on opposite sides of the gate structure GS. In an exemplaryembodiment of the present inventive concept, the source/drain region 110may be a raised source/drain (RSD).

Each of the first contact structure CS1, the second, contact, structureCS2, the third contact structure CS3, and the fourth contact structureCS4 may be connected to the source/drain region 110 and may pass throughthe first interlayer insulating layer 161. Each of the first contactstructure CS1, the second contact structure CS2, the third contactstructure CS3, and the fourth contact structure CS4 may include themetal silicide layer 182, the first conductive barrier 181, as well asthe first contact plug 185A, the second contact plug 185B, the thirdcontact plug 185C, and the fourth contact plug 185D.

FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II′ and lineIII-III′ of the semiconductor device 100C described with reference toFIG. 3A. Referring to FIG. 3B an interconnection structure connects ametal line to a contact plug.

An interconnection structure employed in an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept may include a metal via positioned in acontact point of a metal line, and the first via connection layer 195Aand the second via connection layer 195B connecting the metal via to thecontact plug. A dotted line BL indicates a level of a bottom surface ofthe active fin 105.

The metal line employed in an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept may include the first metal line M1, the second metalline M2, and the third metal line M3, extended in the first direction(e.g., an x direction). The second metal line M2 and the third metalline M3, a portion of the first metal line, the second metal line, andthe third metal line, as well as the first contact plug 185A and thesecond contact plug 185B may be connected to the first metal via V1 andthe second, metal via V2 through the first via connection layer 195A andthe second via connection layer 195B, respectively. The first metal viaV1 and the second metal via V2 may be formed in a contact point of thesecond metal line M2 and the third, metal line M3.

Referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, when viewed in a vertical direction (e.g.,a z direction), the third, metal line M3 related to the first contactplug 185A may be spaced apart from an upper surface boundary of theactive region AR along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface ofthe substrate 101. As an example, the first metal via V1 positioned in acontact point of the third metal line M3 may be spaced apart from theupper surface boundary of the active region AR along the directionorthogonal, to the upper surface of the substrate 101. A lower surfaceof the first contact plug 185A may overlap an upper surface of theactive region AR along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface ofthe substrate 101.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, to connectthe first contact plug 185A to the first metal via V1, which does notoverlap in a vertical direction (e.g., in a z direction), the first viaconnection layer 195A may extend in a horizontal direction (e.g., a x-ydirection). The first via connection layer 195A may be positionedbetween an upper surface of the first contact plug 185A and a level(e.g., a first level) in which, the first metal via V1 is positioned.

In a different manner from the first contact plug 185A, the secondcontact plug 185B may be positioned in a region overlapping′ the secondmetal via V2 along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of thesubstrate 101. In this case, referring to FIG. 3B, the second contactplug 18 5B may be connected to the second metal via V2 by the second viaconnection layer 195B. The second via connection layer 1353 may beformed, in the second interlayer insulating layer 162 with the first viaconnection layer 195A.

The semiconductor device 100C according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept may include a jumping connection layer 197connecting the third contact plug 185C to the fourth contact plug 185Dconnected to source/drain regions 110 of other adjacent devices, withthe gate structure GS disposed therebetween. For example, the jumpingconnection layer 197 may be a node of a static random, access memory(SRAM) device.

The jumping connection layer 197 may be formed at substantially a samelevel (e.g., a level of the second interlayer insulating layer 162) asthe first via connection layer 195A and the second via connection layer195B. The jumping connection layer 197 employed in an exemplaryembodiment of the present inventive concept may be disposed on the firstinterlayer insulating layer 161 positioned in the gate structure GS. Thesecond conductive barrier 191 may be positioned between the first viaconnection layer 195A and the second via connection layer 195B, thejumping connection layer 197, as well as the second interlayerinsulating layer 162.

The jumping connection layer 197 may be formed with the first viaconnection layer 195A and the second via connection layer 195B. Thefirst via connection layer 195A and the second via connection layer195B, as well as the jumping connection layer 197 may include a samematerial as the first contact plug 185A, the second contact plug 185B,the third contact plug 185C, and the fourth contact plug 185D. Forexample, the jumping connection layer 197 may include a metal such as W,Co, or Ti.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device according toan exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 4, a semiconductor device 100D according to anexemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept is similar to thesemiconductor device 100C described above with reference to FIG. 3A andFIG. 3B, except that the second interlayer insulating layer (see, e.g.,162 of FIG. 1B) is omitted, the via connection layer 195′ is formed inupper ends of the first interlayer insulating layer 161 and the firstcontact plug 185A′, and the jumping connection layer 197 is positionedin an upper surface of the gate capping layer 147, Thus, duplicativedescriptions may be omitted below. For example, a layout of thesemiconductor device 100C described above with reference to FIG. 3A andFIG. 3B and the description thereof may be applied to the semiconductordevice 100D described in more detail below.

The via connection layer 195′ according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept may be formed to be integrated with thefirst contact plug 185A′ along an upper region of the first interlayerinsulating layer 161 in a manner similar to that described withreferenced to FIG. 2. The first contact plug 185A′ integrated with thevia connection layer 195′ may include the single conductive barrier181′. The via connection layer 195′ and the first contact plug 185A′ maybe formed using a single filling process. The first contact plug 185A′may have an upper surface substantially coplanar with an upper surfaceof the via connection layer 195′ (see, e.g., FIGS. 8 through 12). In anexemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept, the contactstructure CS1′ may be integrated with the via connection layer 195′.

The second contact plug 185B may be directly connected to the secondmetal via V2 without a via connection layer. Thus, the second contactplug 185B may be electrically connected to the second metal line M2, anda via connection layer may be omitted.

The jumping connection layer 197′ employed in an exemplary embodiment ofthe present inventive concept may be formed at substantially a samelevel as the via connection layer 195′, and thus may be disposed alongan upper surface of the gate structure GS. Referring to FIG. 4, thejumping connection layer 197′ may be positioned in an upper surface ofthe gate capping layer 147. The jumping connection layer 197′ employedin an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept may beformed, with the third, contact plug 185C and the fourth contact plug185D. Thus,: in a manner similar to the contact structure CS1′integrated with the via connection layer 195′, the jumping connectionlayer 197′ as well as the third contact plug 185C and the fourth contactplug 1850 may be formed using a single filling process, and may have asingle conductive barrier 181′. Thus, a conductive barrier material neednot be present between the via connection layer 195′ and the firstcontact plug 185A′, and between the jumping connection layer 197′ andeach of the third contact plug 185C and the fourth contact plug 185D.

FIGS. 5 through 7 are drawings illustrating a method of manufacturing asemiconductor device according to an exemplary embodiment, of thepresent inventive concept. FIGS. 5 through 7 are cross-sectional viewsIllustrating an operation of forming an interconnection structure in thesemiconductor device 100A described. with reference to FIG. 1B.

Referring to FIG. 5, a semiconductor device is provided including thefirst contact structure GSI and the second contact structure CS2 beforethe second, interlayer insulating layer 162 is formed.

After a plug material for the first contact structure CS1 and the secondcontact structure CS2 is filled, a chemical mechanical polishing processmay be performed, and thus upper surfaces of the first contact structureCS1 and the second contact structure CS2 may be substantially coplanarwith an upper surface of the first interlayer insulating layer 161.Lower surfaces of the first contact plug 185A and the second contactplug 185B may be formed to be positioned within upper surface boundariesof the first active region AR1 and the second active region. AR2,respectively,

Referring to FIG. 6, the second interlayer insulating layer 162 may beformed, on the first interlayer insulating layer 161, and the first viaconnection layer 195 a and the second via connection layer 195 b may beformed in the second, interlayer insulating layer 162.

The second interlayer insulating layer 162 may be formed on the firstinterlayer insulating layer 161. As an example, the second interlayerinsulating layer 162 may include TEOS, USG, PSG, BSG, BPSG, FSG, SOG,TOSZ or combinations thereof, and may be formed, using a chemical vapordeposition (CVD) or spin coating process. The second interlayerinsulating layer 162 may include a same material as the first interlayerinsulating layer 161.

A photolithography process may be used to form open areas for the firstvia connection layer 195 a and the second via connection layer 195 b inthe second interlayer insulating layer 162. For example, an open areafor the first via connection layer 195 a may be formed to be extended toa contact point (e.g., the first metal via V1) with a metal line spacedapart from an upper surface boundary of the first active region ARIalong the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate101. The second conductive barrier 191 and the first via connectionlayer 195A may be formed in an open area.

Referring to FIG. 7, a first open area Oa and a second open area Ob maybe formed in the first low dielectric layer 171 and the second lowdielectric layer 172, respectively.

The first low dielectric layer 171 and the second low dielectric layer172 may be sequentially formed on the second interlayer insulating layer162. The first open area Oa connected to the first via connection layer195A may be formed in the first low dielectric: layer 171 and the secondlow dielectric layer 172, and the second open area Ob for a metal linemay be formed in the second low dielectric: layer 172. The first openarea Oa and the second open area Ob may be filled with a metal and a CMPprocess is applied thereto, so a desired metal via and a desired metalline may be formed.

FIGS. 8 through 12 are drawings illustrating a method, of manufacturinga semiconductor device according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept. FIGS. 8 through 12 are cross-sectional viewsillustrating an operation of forming an interconnection structure in thesemiconductor device described with reference to FIG. 2.

Referring to FIG. 8, a first contact hole CV1 and a second contact holeCV2 may be formed in the first interlayer insulating layer 161.

The first contact hole CV1 and the second contact hole CV2 may passthrough the first interlayer insulating layer 161 to be connected, tothe first source/drain region 110 and the second source/drain region210, respectively. The first contact hole CV1 and the second contacthole CV2 may be formed, using a photolithography process.

Referring to FIG. 9, a selective etching process forming a viaconnection region VC extended from the first contact hole CV1 may beperformed.

The selective etching process may be performed before an operation offorming a contact structure CS1′. The contact structure CS1′ may besubsequently formed, for example, by a barrier forming and fillingoperation. The first contact hole CV1 and the second contact hole CV2may be filled with a hard mask material 251 such as a Spin-On Hardmask(SOH). Next, a photoresist, film PR may be formed on the interlayerinsulating layer 161, and an opening OV for the via connection region VGmay be formed in the photoresist film PR. Referring to FIG. 10, afterthe photoresist film PR and the hard mask material 251 are removed, afirst contact hole CV1′ extended, to the via connection region VG may beformed.

Referring to FIG. 11, after the hard mask material is removed, a metallayer 182′ and a barrier material layer 181″ may be formed in the firstcontact hole CV1′, having been extended, and the second contact holeCV2.

The metal layer 182′ may include a metal or metal silicide. For example,the metal may include Ti, Co, Ni, Ta, Pt, or combinations thereof. Themetal layer 182′ may be formed using a PVD process.

The barrier material layer 181″ may be conformally formed in innersurfaces of the first contact hole CV1′, having been extended, and thesecond contact hole CV2, as well as an upper surface of the interlayerinsulating layer 161. An operation described above may be performedusing a PVD, CVD, or ALD process. For example, the barrier materiallayer 181″ may include TiN, TaN, AlN, WN, or combinations thereof.

Referring to FIG. 12, the metal silicide layer 182 is formed from themetal layer 182′, and the first contact hole CV1′, having been extended,and the second contact hole CV2 are filled with a conductive material,so the first contact plug 185A and the second contact plug 185B may beformed.

The metal silicide layer 182 may be formed, as the metal layer 182′ isheat-treated and thus reacts with a semiconductor material of the firstsource/drain region 110 and the second source/drain region 210. A heattreatment process described above may performed using, for example,laser annealing. For example, the conductive material may include W, Cu,Ti, alloys thereof, or combinations thereof.

The first contact plug 185A employed in an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept may be formed as a contact plug 180 integratedwith the via connection layer 195′ for connection to a metal via. Thus,the metal via connected with the via connection layer 195′ maybe spacedapart from (i.e., does not overlap) the first active region AR1 alongthe direction orthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate 101.

After filling a conductive material, until a portion of the barriermaterial layer 181″, positioned in an upper surface of the interlayerinsulating layer 161 is removed, a polishing process such as a CMPprocess may be performed. Thus, an upper surface of the contact plug 180including the first contact plug 185A′, having been extended by the viaconnection layer 195′, may be substantially coplanar with an uppersurface of the interlayer insulating layer 161, and the conductivebarrier 181′ for the contact structure GS1′ and the first conductivebarrier 181 for the contact structure CS2 may be formed (see, e.g., FIG.12).

A via connection layer for connecting a contact plug to a metal line(e.g., a metal via) of a BEOL may be designed to have various routings.The via connection layer may have portions extended in differentdirections, and may be formed to have various shapes, for example an I,L, T or an H-shape. The via connection layer may be used as a viaconnection layer for connecting two or more contacts to a single metalvia at the same time. A via connection layer having various shapesemployed in exemplary embodiments of the present inventive concept willbe described in more detail below with reference to FIGS. 13A and 14.

FIG. 13A is a planar layout diagram, illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording′ to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept.A contact plug and a metal line are illustrated in FIG. 13A to describea shape of the via connection layer.

Referring to FIG. 13A, a semiconductor device according to an exemplaryembodiment or the present inventive concept may include a first contactplug CA1, a second contact plug CA2, a third contact plug CA3, and afourth contact plug CA4, as well as the first metal line M1, the secondmetal line M2, and the third metal line M3.

A via connection layer 295 employed in an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept may allow the first contact plug CA1, thesecond contact plug CA2, and the third contact plug CA3 among fourcontact plugs to commonly connected to a metal via V of the second metalline M2. The via connection layer 295 may include a first portion 295 aextended to one direction (e.g., a y direction), and a second portion295 b extended in another direction (e.g., an x direction) intersectingthe one direction.

FIG. 133 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV′ and line V-V′of FIG. 13A. FIG. 13B illustrates a structure in which a via connectionlayer is formed without the introduction of an additional interlayerinsulating layer, such as in the exemplary embodiments of the presentinventive concept described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and4.

Referring to FIG. 13B, the first portion 295 a may be formed to connectthe first contact plug CA1 to the second contact plug CA2 on aninterlayer insulating layer 260, and may be connected to the metal via Vformed in a first low dielectric layer 271. The metal via V may beconnected to the second metal line M2 formed in a second low dielectriclayer 272. The second portion 295 b may be extended from an end of thefirst portion 295 a (e.g., along an extending direction perpendicular toan extending direction of the first portion 295 a), and may be connectedto the second contact plug CA2 and the third contact plug CA3.

The first portion. 295 a and the second portion 295 b forming a viaconnection layer according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept may be formed using a single photolithography processand a single etching process. However, to obtain a more precise profilein a portion in which the first portion 295 a intersects the second,portion 295 b, the first portion. 295 a and the second portion 295 b maybe formed using a separate photolithography process and a separateetching process (see, e.g., FIGS. 15 through 19).

FIG. 14 is a planar layout diagram illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 14, a semiconductor device according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present inventive concept may include a first contactplug CA1, a second, contact plug CA2, a third contact plug CA3, a fourthcontact, plug CA4, a fifth contact plug CA5, and a sixth contact plugCA6, as well as a first metal line M1, a second metal line M2, a thirdmetal line M3.

A via connection layer 395 employed in an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept may allow the first contact plug CA1, thethird contact plug CA3, the fourth contact plug CA4, and the sixthcontact plug CAS to be commonly connected to a metal via V of the secondmetal line M2. The via connection layer 395 may include a first portion395 a and a third portion 395 c extended in one direction (e.g., a ydirection), and a second portion 395 b extended in another direction(e.g., an x direction) intersecting the one direction. The first portion395 a allows the first contact plug CA1 and the fourth contact plug CA4to be connected to each other with the metal via V, and the thirdportion 395 c allows the third contact plug CA3 and the sixth contactplug CA6 to be connected to each other. Both ends of the second portion395 b may be connected to the first portion 395 a and the third portion395 c, respectively, thus allowing the first contact plug′ CA1, thethird contact plug CA3, the fourth contact plug CA4, and the sixthcontact plug CA6 to be commonly connected to the second metal line M2.

FIGS. 15 through 19 are drawings illustrating a method of manufacturinga semiconductor device according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept. For example, FIGS. 15 through 19 are drawingsillustrating a method of manufacturing the semiconductor devicedescribed with reference to FIG. 13B.

Referring to FIG. 15, a contact hole CV1, a second contact hole CV2, anda third contact hole CV3 may be formed, and may then be filled with afirst hard mask material 251. A first photoresist film PR1 having anopening O1 for formation of the first portion (e.g., 295 a describedwith reference to FIGS. 13A and 13B) of a via connection layer may beformed thereafter.

Referring to FIG. 16, the first photoresist film PR1 may be used toadditionally etch a region VL2 corresponding to the first portion 295 aindicated by a dotted line, and the region VL1 corresponding to thefirst portion 295 a may be filled with a second, hard mask material 253.

A region selectively etched in an operation described, above may includenot only a portion of the first hard mask material 251 with which thefirst contact hole CV1 and the second contact, hole CV2 are filled, butalso a portion of the interlayer insulating layer 260 positioned betweenthe first contact hole CV1 and the second contact hole CV2.

Referring to FIG. 17, a second photoresist film PR2 having an opening O2for formation of the second portion 295 b of a via connection layer maybe formed. To connect the first portion 295 a to the second portion 295b to be formed in a subsequent process, a region VL2 corresponding tothe second portion 295 b may be formed, to overlap the region VL1corresponding to the first portion 295 a along the direction orthogonalto the upper surface of the substrate 101.

Referring to FIG. 18, the second photoresist film PR2 may be used, toadditionally etch a region corresponding to the second portion 295 b ofa via connection layer, and the second photoresist film PR2 may beremoved.

Referring to FIG. 19, the first hard mask material 251 and the secondhard mask material 253 remaining on the first contact hole CV1, thesecond contact hole CV2, and the third contact hole CVS, may be removed,so the first contact hole CV1, the second contact hole CV2, and thethird contact hole CVS connected by the region VL1 corresponding to thefirst portion and the region VL2 corresponding to the second portion maybe formed. The first contact hole CV1, the second contact hole CV2, andthe third contact hole CV3 connected as described above may be filledwith a conductive barrier layer and a conductive material, so a contactplug structure connected by the first portion 295 a and the secondportion 295 b of the via connection layer described with reference toFIG. 13B may be formed.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating an electronic device in which asemiconductor device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept is employed as a memory device.

Referring to FIG. 20, an electronic device 1000 may include an imagesensor 1010, an input and output device 1020, a memory device 1030, anda processor 1040, configured to communicate via a bus 1060.

Among components described with reference to FIG. 20, a port 1050 may bea device configured to allow the electronic device 1000 to communicatewith a video card, a sound card, a memory card, or a USB device. Theelectronic device 1000 may include, for example, a general desktopcomputer or a laptop computer, as well as a smartphone, a tablet PC, ora wearable smart device.

The processor 1040 may be configured perform specific operations,commands, or tasks. The processor 1040 may be a central processing unit(CPU) or a microprocessor unit (MCU), and may communicate with otherdevices connected to the memory device 1030, the input and output device1020, the image sensor 1010, and the port 1050 through the bus 1060.

The memory device 1030 may be a storage medium storing data, such asmultimedia data, used for an operation of an electronic device 1000 suchas a computer. The memory device 1030, as a semiconductor deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept,may include at least one of a memory such as SRAM, or a solid statedrive (SSD) including the same, a hard disk drive (HDD), and an opticaldrive (ODD). The input and output device 1020 may include an inputdevice such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a touch screen, provided for auser, as well as an output device such as a display, and an audio outputportion.

The image sensor 1010 may have a sensor circuit having a plurality oftransistors, and a semiconductor device forming the sensor circuit, mayhave the interconnection structure described above according to anexemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept.

As set forth above, according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept, as a via connection layer connecting a contact plugto a metal line (e.g., a metal via) of a BEOL, positioned in differentregions, in a horizontal direction is introduced, an occurrence of ashort defect with other adjacent components (e.g., a source/drain ofanother adjacent device) may be reduced or eliminated, and a sufficientmargin may be formed when an interconnection structure is formed.

A via connection layer employed in an exemplary embodiment of thepresent inventive concept may be formed with a node contact of a staticrandom access memory (SRAM). An exemplary embodiment of the presentinventive concept may also be employed in an interconnection structurein which various routings are employed.

While the present inventive concept has been particularly shown anddescribed with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will beunderstood that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present inventiveconcept.

1. A semiconductor device, comprising: a substrate having a deviceisolation region defining an active region; an active fin positioned inthe active region and extended in a first direction; a gate structureoverlapping the active fin along a direction orthogonal to an uppersurface of the substrate and extended in a second direction intersectingthe first direction; a source/drain region disposed on the active fin; acontact plug connected to the source/drain region, and overlapping theactive region along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of thesubstrate; a metal via positioned at a first level above the substrate,higher than an upper surface of the contact plug, and spaced apart fromthe active region along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface ofthe substrate; a metal line positioned at a second level above thesubstrate, higher than the first, level, and connected to the metal via;and a via connection layer extended from an upper portion of the contactplug and connected to the metal via.
 2. The semiconductor device ofclaim 1, wherein the via connection layer is positioned at a levelbetween the upper surface of the contact plug and the first level
 3. Thesemiconductor device of claim 2, further comprising: a first conductivebarrier disposed on a side surface and a lower surface of the contactplug, and a second conductive harrier disposed on a side surface and alower surface of the via connection layer, wherein a portion of thesecond conductive barrier is positioned between the contact plug and thevia connection layer.
 4. The semiconductor device of claim 1, whereinthe upper surface of the contact plug is substantially coplanar with anupper surface of the via connection layer.
 5. The semiconductor deviceof claim 1, wherein the via connection layer is integrated with thecontact plug.
 6. The semiconductor device of claim 5, wherein the viaconnection layer includes a same material as a material included in thecontact plug.
 7. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein the viaconnection layer is positioned at substantially a same level as an uppersurface of the gate structure.
 8. The semiconductor device of claim 1,wherein the contact plug includes a first contact, plug and a secondcontact plug connected to the source/drain region provided assource/drain regions, respectively, with the gate structure positionedtherebetween, and wherein the contact plug further includes a jumpingconnection layer positioned at substantially a same level as the viaconnection layer, and connecting the first contact plug to the secondcontact plug.
 9. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein the viaconnection layer includes a first portion extended in one direction anda second portion extended in another direction intersecting the onedirection.
 10. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein the contactplug includes a plurality of contact plugs, and the via connection layeris commonly connected to an upper portion of the plurality of contactplugs and extended to the metal via.
 11. The semiconductor device ofclaim 1, wherein the via connection layer and the contact plug areformed of a same material.
 12. The semiconductor device of claim 11,wherein the via connection layer and the contact plug each includetungsten (W), cobalt (Co), titanium (Ti), alloys thereof, or acombinations thereof. 13-15. (canceled)
 16. The semiconductor device ofclaim 1, further comprising an additional metal via positioned at thefirst level, higher than the upper surface of the contact plug, andpositioned at the upper surface of the active region along the directionorthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate, an additional metalline positioned at the second level, higher than the first level, andconnected to the metal via, and an additional via connection layerconnecting the additional metal line to the metal line. 17-18.(canceled)
 19. A semiconductor device, comprising: an active regionhaving an upper surface in which a plurality of active fins are defined;a gate structure overlapping at least one active fin of the plurality ofactive fins along a direction orthogonal to an upper surface of thesubstrate; a source/drain region disposed on the plurality of activefins; a contact plug having a lower surface connected to thesource/drain region; a metal via spaced apart from the contact plugalong the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of the substrate andpositioned at a first level above the substrate, higher than an uppersurface of the contact plug; a metal line positioned at a second level,higher than the first level, and connected to the metal via; and a viaconnection layer having an upper surface substantially coplanar with theupper surface of the contact plug, and extended from an upper portion ofthe contact plug and connected to the metal via.
 20. The semiconductordevice of claim 19, wherein the via connection layer is formed of a samematerial as a material of the contact plug.
 21. The semiconductor deviceof claim 19, wherein the via connection layer is positioned atsubstantially a same level as an upper surface of the gate structure.22. The semiconductor device of claim 19, wherein the contact plugincludes a first contact plug and a second contact plug connected to thesource/drain region provided as source/drain regions, respectively, withthe gate structure positioned therebetween, and wherein the contact plugfurther includes a jumping connection layer disposed along an uppersurface of the gate structure and connecting the first contact plug tothe second contact plug.
 23. The semiconductor device of claim 19,wherein the jumping connection layer is positioned at substantially asame level as the via connection layer.
 24. A semiconductor device,comprising: a substrate including a first active region and a secondactive region; a first active fin positioned in the first active region;a first source/drain region disposed on the first active fin; a firstcontact plug positioned above the first source/drain region; a first viaconnection layer positioned above the first contact plug, wherein thefirst via connection layer includes a first portion overlapping thefirst contact plug along a direction orthogonal to an upper surface ofthe substrate, and a second portion spaced apart from the first contactplug along the direction orthogonal to the upper surface of thesubstrate; a first metal via disposed on the second portion of the firstvia connection layer; a first metal line disposed on the first metalvia; a second active fin positioned in the second active region; asecond source/drain region disposed on the second active fin; a secondcontact plug positioned above the second source/drain region; a secondvia connection layer positioned above the second contact plug andoverlapping the second contact plug along the direction orthogonal tothe upper surface of the substrate; a second metal via disposed on thesecond via connection layer; and a second metal line disposed on thesecond metal via.
 25. The semiconductor device of claim 24, wherein thefirst metal via is positioned between the first active region and thesecond active region.